While serving as the President of Oak Brook, I had many opportunities to interact with Henry and to call on him for assistance. He was a very gracious man, amazingly knowledge-filled especially about the people of his district and our needs and concerns. He was a giant in an arena that is often filled with petty little people. He will be missed.

Although his public career will stay on the pages of history forever, I will never forget the man who sat next to us on the bleachers at Little League games and took the time to work with the kids on their throwing form. He was a real three dimensional man. What a nice legacy for those of us who knew him as a younger man.

Like many of his Republican partisans he demonstrated a level of hypocrisy only recently superseded by this administration. Pushing impeachment charges for purely partisan gain while hiding his own illicit affair, he was a disgrace to the office he held.

My parents told me to never speak ill of the deceased, so I will simply say, "May he rest in peace."

I have little sympathy for Hyde. The impeachment exposed a lot of things wrong with government and Hyde was one of them. It is somewhat satisfying when the players of that chapter in American history expire.

He was a very good man. He is going to get a wonderful reward in heaven. He fought for the unborn babies. May he rest in peace.

Ah, why am I not surprised that the Loons on the Left get it all wrong.

Clinton was NOT impeached for having an affair. He was impeached for obstructing justice and perjury. He lied under oath in a court of law and impeded an investigation into his own sexual harrassment case. I remember a time when the Lefties fought tooth and nail to nab anyone who sexually harrassed. Course, that all changed when their boy, Slick Willie, was caught as Chief Sexual Harrasser. Then sexual harrassment became OK and hey, "it's just about sex, no big deal."

Anyway, may Mr. Hastert rest in peace.

I feel bad for his family. The loss of a parent is difficult no matter what your age is.

Mr. Henry Hyde will be missed. His intellect is unsurpassed not only cerebrally, but also in making the layman feel heard and understood. As a reminder, the Clinton impeachment was about purgery and NOT adultery. Clinton's adulterous nature/past played into the lier he was even to the courts of the land. THIS, is criminal. Criminal charges of lying are what Clinton's impeachment was about; having nothing to do with a "bitterly hypocrytical partisan fight..." Clinton was so desperate that he even spoke so as to call for the definition of, "is." Put THAT on Clinton's tombstone. Hyde's tombstone will be clear of any mud.

Like many others have said - hypocrite!!! Attacking Clinton while he was having an affair himself. He was just another Republican male who restricted a woman's right to chose. Not a great man, not a loss to society.

To all those who attack Congressman Hyde even in death: thank you for confirming the ugliness and depravity of those on the left.

bj:

It's perjury, not pergery.

Johnny:

And I am sure you are one of the great patriots who thought Scooter Libby's perjury conviction was a miscarriage of justice. Now we know that W lied about the outing of Valerie Plame too.

Clinton lies - NO ONE dies

Bush lies - THOUSANDS die

"Anyway, may Mr. Hastert rest in peace" ...this is what John D wrote at the bottom of his comment. Did Denny Hastert die too?

Mr. Hyde was not perfect just forgiven as a believer in Jesus Christ. He was also a believer in human rights and fought diligently for the rights of unborn children. May he rest in peace.

So much anger over a man's death? I am a political moderate and try not to buy into the notion that there is an "Angry Left" in this country, but these comments certainly give creedence to it.
Rest in peace Henry Hyde and may God smile upon you.

BYE

I differed with Henry Hyde on many issues, and he made his share of mistakes. But I always respected the dignity he brought to the office and the way he treated his opponents. He was not an evil man. The sheer ugliness of so many of these comments proves only one thing. He was more of a gentleman than many of you ever will be. He won't have taken petty, sniveling hatred to his grave, which is more than can be said for you.

Henry Hyde worked throughout his life to improve and protect the lives of others.
He was a gentleman.
He was a statesman.
His legacy will be studied and appreciated throughout the years to come. May he rest in peace.

It's sad that Mr. Hyde has passed away. However, it really irks me to know this man was overly zealous about impeaching President Bill Clinton when he had an affair himself. What a hippocrite.

Hyde was extraordinary in many ways. His candor, grace, intelligence and eloquence leap out as distinguishing characteristics. Few of his calibre entered politics then. Fewer still do so today. His life was well lived for what he saw as the benefit of others and in defense of the most fundamental natural right of those who are utterly dependent on others. He stood for his beliefs come fair or foul.

Those delighting in this news may wish to refer to the statements by Congressman Hyde's Democratic colleagues. They will far better state the measure of the man.

To conflate Hyde's personal history -- abject as it was in this single regard -- with the articles of perjury and obstruction of justice for which Pres. Clinton was impeached, is to advance the moral principle that "two wrongs make a right." What it lacks in flippancy it zestfully makes up for in irrationality.

Principle leads people to do very difficult, and deeply unpopular, things.

Democrats might recall Adlai Stevenson calling for a test ban treaty well before it was fashionable. Or they might bear in mind Gene McCarthy standing up to a sitting president of his own party. Or perhaps they might recall Sen. Henry Jackson forcing unpopular stringencies on the Soviet Union when the tenor of the party was in support of detente. Or -- more recently -- they might look to Sen. Lieberman's steadfast personal courage.

Hyde respected each of these people for their integrity, determination and insight. Perhaps in his passing all of us, except of course those steeped in personal animus and vitriol, may learn again that principle and popularity frequently walk apart. I know which companion Henry preferred.

Finally, I have to say that there is no better example of coarseness than visciousness at the time of a passing. Should Hyde's friends and supporters ever be as degenerate at the passing of an erstwhile political adversary, then we will be as deserving of contempt as those who trample on the Hyde family's departed loved one are today.

One hopes to see better behavior from people who understood the greatness in Henry Hyde.

Best,

chris robling

Anyway, may Mr. Hastert rest in peace.

Posted by: John D | November 29, 2007 10:48 AM

Man you are THE absolute worst journalist. You are so quick to throw verbal grenades you can't even do a simple fact check or proof read. Can you read?

To all the neocons putting down all of us on the "Loony Left" for making hateful comments, one question: why is it ok for your hero Ann Coulter (and those of her ilk) to projectile-vomit her own nasty vitriol all over the place?? Did you ever comment on how hateful SHE is??

(by the way, my own previous comment wasn't hateful...i simply asked why John D, in an earlier post, said for "Mr. Hastert" to rest in peace. I didn't know he died too?)

Denny Hastert paraphrasing Mark Twain: "Rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated."

Rest in peace, Henry; and thanks for all your good work. There are a lot of children and young people who may be alive today thanks to your stands on abortion.

And...there's a long line of wags over here at the peanut gallery who will all join you, sooner or later but now are fighting over who gets the soapbox.

I'm shocked endless rage by the doom-gloom liberal Debbie-Downers who upon the death of Henry Hyde declared him a hyprocrite.
Clinton was impeached for
lying-under-oath; not for adultery. But then again
liberals need to repeat a mantra over and over like a child coping with the weaning process.

Oh, by the way, the Constitution does not declare a separation of Church & State. Hope that last statemen causes you Debbie-Downers to jump out a window.

Get over it!

Henry Hyde was basically a conservative and we are saddened at his death.

"Eternal Life grant unto him Oh Lord!"

It’s funny that while singling out Clinton’s transgressions as immoral and pushing for his impeachment, it would later be learned that Mr. Hyde had similar transgressions of his own. His decade long affair with Cherie Snodgrass, a married woman, would destroy another mans marriage. For a holier than thou type he broke three of the Ten Commandments while in his crusade against Bill Clinton, No. SEVEN: 'You shall not commit adultery.' NINE: 'You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.' And No. TEN: 'You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's.' The sins of the dark come out in the light. Good luck old timer.

He shamed himself along with several other Republican congressmen during the impeachment trial of Clinton, while they were, themselves, guilty of the crime for which they wanted to impeach Clinton. Shame, shame, shame.

Like him or not, Hyde was clearly and easily seen from whince he was coming. Unlike the current batch of GOP who twist and morph, Hyde did not hide.

He was good at politics but bad for working people. I always wondered how he could continue to be elected in a blue collar district yet oppose every protection for workers while championing corporate freedom to screw the workers at every opportunity. He certainly was not there for Chicago based United Airline workers throughout the company bankruptcy ordeal though many of those workers lived in his district. As a fellow Catholic, I sort of understand where he was coming from in his quest for saving the life of the unborn, but he didn't care much for the living in need of compassion and his congressional representation to which he was elected.

Ah, why am I not surprised that the Loons on the Left get it all wrong.
Posted by: John D | November 29, 2007 10:48 AM

Here is John D. claiming the same old nonsense. You claim it was lying under oath, yet the "crime" he was being blamed for wasn't a crime and nobodys business but theirs. Besides you claim Libby didn't lie under oath because no crime was committed....and that was for outing someone in the CIA for political reasons.

No body spewed hate at Hyde ,we just said he was a hypocrit as were many other republicans with him at the time; they were so determined to get something on Clinton that all they had was sex in the end .Washington !!!!!!!!!!,nothing but sex for God 's sake dont you watch the news ,personally I ,m not interested in anyone's sex life President or otherwise ,dem .or repb.those matters are between husbands and wives and has nothing to do with running the country .it looks to me like the right are the ones spewing the hate

Henry Hyde served his Congressional District, State and Country well. In the current political climate in Washington sane and competent people like Henry Hyde are needed. He will surely be missed. It is really a shame that even before his body is cold the Left Wing Crazies have come out of the woodwork with their stupid and hateful comments. Those people are hateful and ignorant people and unfortunately influence one of the two major political parties with their crazy views and beliefs. Rest in Peace Henry Hyde.

Just what part of history don't you idiot Democrats understand ? Slick was not impeached for the affair, he was impeached for lying under oath. If that is so hard for you morons to understand you should all return to elementary school for the remedial reading class. My God are you people dense !

I knew Congressman Hyde. When my wife and I were engaged to be married, we were finishing college and I began petitioning for her residency - she was here on a student visa. Anyway, the process is supposed to slow and painful, but things were taking longer than usual and I was asked by INS to pay the fees 3 times!

Long story short, I bumped into Mr. Hyde at Dappers in Addison and we just sparked up a conversation. He asked that I submit a letter to him explaining what steps we had taken and he'd see what he could do. We did... and in no time he was able to help correct the logistical mistakes made by the INS that were blocking the process.

That was a long time ago... we've been married 15 years now.

Many of you will probably bash me for admiring the man but how can I not when he helped me so much.

Farewell Congressman... and thank you.

"Oh, by the way, the Constitution does not declare a separation of Church & State."
James E. Unger | November 29, 2007 11:54 AM

Maybe so. But the Founders did not intend to establish a Christian nation as George Washington signed a Treaty (enforceable by law) stating:

"As the Government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Musselmen; and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."

November 4, 1796

Congressman Henry Hyde was truly one of the most powerful men in the USA. because he was in charge of secret CIA funding for very dangerous operations concerning "ERASIING SOME PEOPLE. CONGRESSMEN HYDE IS ALSO TO BE REPECTED FOR IMPEACHING THAT HORRIBLE PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON.

May Henry Hyde rest in peace and may God welcome him to his just eternal reward.
He managed the House Impeachment and was successful.
He always stood up against killing babies in the womb known in secular America as abortion a/k/a murder.
If Trent Lott could have done half as good a job in the Senate Billie Clinton would have stood convicted of it. Hyde put the evidence out there Lott and other RINOS couldn't do their jobs. Jerry White,Springfield, IL

Fourteen years ago, I was an intern lobbyist in Washington, D.C. for the National Youth Pro Life Coalition. I actually met Henry Hyde in person, and remember him to be a gentleman and a statesman. He practiced his craft with conviction and dignity. I remember feeling unworthy at the time I met him. But he showed interest in me personally, and my colleagues. I support his views that pregnant women need to “step up” and assume their parental responsibilities, just like fathers should “step up” when the child is born and support that child. Thank goodness for Henry Hyde. I will miss him, and so will many others.

Hyde represented the citizens of DuPage County---an area of Chicagoland that I commonly describe to friends as home to "Hillbillies, minus the hills."

There are few DuPage communities, like Glen Ellyn, that are possible exceptions, but I think my description is fairly accurate, and the reason why DuPage folks preferred re-electing representatives like Hyde and Pate Phillip for so many years.

How do you Liberals get up and face the day? You are the most hate filled people on this earth.

Although it is always fun to trot out the Repubs obsessive jealousy over Clinton's sex life, I have to agree that it's not appropriate to be disrespectful at someone's passing. Hyde's legacy will speak for itself, but now is the time to exhibit some compassion and ponder the lessons learned from this man. Don't fall into the Coulter zone.

I wonder how many women died because of Henry's anti-woman policies.

I'll never forget when Rep. Hyde walked in and observed the student council meeting I was conducting as president of student council in 8th grade at Iroquois Community School.
By the way, he impeached Clinton on perjury, NOT on having an affair, not that I condone either.

Left Wing Liberals are proving today with their comments what many of us already knew that they are very Hateful, Ignorant and Little people.

Henry Hyde is missed.
To all those who deem it factual that Hyde led Clinton's impeachment because of adultery, get with it! Clinton was impeached for lying under oath! He committed a crime - against fellow Americans.
That Hyde philandered is of no pertinence here. And, to boot, Hyde 'fessed up. Clinton, in an act of desperation to deny his sex act, argued for a definition of "is."
C'mon, step up and stop slinging mud at a tombstone!

For those of you just reading these comments, you should be aware that a large number of particularly venomous posts that appeared here several hours ago have since been removed. That greatly changes the overall tone of this thread. Like Henry Hyde or dislike him, some of the posts were way out of bounds in using the coarsest expressions of rejoicing at his death. Any of Henry Hyde's family members would have been stricken to read such viciousness in their time of mourning. Please let this stay in the record so that a more realistic perspective can be gained about the comments that were made here.

Humanist
Hypocrisy is what it is.
Posts can be removed but facts can't.

What was said was much worse than hypocrisy, and you will note, John A, that those comments about hypocrisy remain in this forum. That's what some believe to be the man's public record. The comments that were removed were expressions of glee at the death of a sick man, now in private life. There is still a veiled comment remaining in the thread at this time that expresses pleasure at his death - not his departure from public office - his death. Did this man deserve to die, in your opinion, and do you take pleasure in it? As a person, do you think this forum is a proper and decent place for someone who doesn't like you to revel in your death? Sir, how do you define decency? As it applies to others only, or also as it applies to you?

Here I was all set to rail against the Tribune for posting so many truly hateful and despicable comments from Loons on the Left toward the death of Henry Hyde, but not posting my crititicism of it. But when I went to go back and copy one of the worst comments, from weinerbrain, I noticed it was gone. In fact, many of the heinous comments are gone. So, rather than rail against the Swamp censors, I will give them semi-bravos (after all they did originally let them get posted) for pulling what amounted to a pile of horse manure.

Yes, Loons, I had a brain cramp. I meant may Henry Hyde rest in peace, not Dennis Hastert.

Over and over, the same vengeful childish legally inaccurate comments.Clinton was not impeached for having an affair. He was impeached, but not convicted, for multiple charges of lying under oath. Perjury. For that matter, he did not have "an" affair. This "great defender of women's rights" (because he believes it's ok to kill a human fetus) repeatedly used his position as governor or president to force himself on, and publicly humiliate , one woman after another. Not Monica Lewinsky, she was enjoying herself while they degraded our Oval Office.But Paula Jones,Kathleen Willey, Dollie Kyle Browning, the flight attendants on his campaign plane,etc,etc did not deserve to be put through the public wringer because of Bill Clinton's habitual lack of honor and hormonal control. Yes, Henry had "an" affair with one woman, and it lasted 7 years, because they both really cared about each other. No one sees any obvious difference between the two ? Not that he was correct in letting this happen, but his wife and family forgave him, for one
relationship with one other woman.

As far as his Hyde Bill, that did not stop women from having an abortion, but it did stop public funding of abortion, for all those Americans who believe that abortion is the murder of a human baby in it's developmental stages.

I once met Henry Hyde.
He talked about not being wealthy, but like many other Americans, hoped that he someday would be.
His Christian beliefs led him to oppose abortion, but said he might make an exception in the cases of rape,incest or medical necessity.He also served in the Armed Forces.

He voted for extending the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (1975, 1981), strengthening fair housing laws (1988), and strengthening the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (1991).
This was a very good man, who had one continual affair with one woman that he cared about very much.

In the case of the Clinton Impeachment hearings,for the charge of Perjury, Henry did his job as required by law, as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

Thank you for your service to the State of Illinois, and our country, Congressman Hyde. My condolences to your family and friends.

Humanist
In no way have I suggested taking pleasure in anybody's death.
In addition it is a disgrace that we have allowed this Administration to have caused the deaths of almost 4000 Americans and 100,000 plus Iraqi's by invading a country that had done nothing to us and was not an iminent threat.
Humanist, Was this a decent thing to do?

I am amused at this blog, earlier on Thursday there were numerous postings calling Hyde a hypocrite and shrill politican. Then the supporting Republican comments came in and all the comments deploring his hypocricacy and in-tolerance were eliminated. I guess the Republican bias/history of the Chicago Tribune is again displayed.

Loons on the left, Liars and Crooks on the right.

I'm fed up with both sides.
When will jornalists finally report the truth about how our tax money is being spent lining the pockets of our elected representatives while the taxpayers are dying and losing their homes. Shame on you all.

Posted by: thinkwithmybrain | November 29, 2007 6:20 PM

I wouldn't necessarily disagree with you, but why was Clinton's sex life anyone's business? At the cost of millions of our tax dollars? Lewinsky wasn't filing any criminal conduct charge, so why was it an issue in the first place? (other than the fact that Repubs were:)

1) Jealous
2) Voyeurs
3) Obsessed closet sex fiends
4) All of the above

To those in the Christian Taliban who believe that there is no stated separation of Church and State in the United States Constitution: Article VI, Clause iii --- The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

Looks like a separation to me...

I used to see Mr. Hyde at mass on many a Sunday. I followed his career and while I did not agree with everything he said or did he was a statesman through and through. But unfortunately even in death the haters are out enmasse. So I'll end with this with a little passage from the Bible, Before you remove the speck out of your opponents eye take the plank out of your own. God bless and keep you.
Rest in Peace.